Instant Pot Pressure cooker Keto Taiwanese 3 cup chicken is a fragrant, satisfying dish bursting with flavor. Garlic, ginger and basil fragrance and combine with sesame oil, Shaoxing wine and soy sauce for an easy, traditional authentic dish that will have you begging for more.

HISTORY BEHIND TAIWANESE 3 CUP CHICKEN SAN BEI JI:

Although there are many different variations to this dish, the basic recipe calls for equal amounts of soy sauce, cooking wine, and sesame oil.

Despite it being called 3 cup chicken, you’re not actually using a cup of each—more like a shot glass to two of each. I suppose if you were using a whole huge chicken and small cups, that math might work out.

But I used two pounds of chicken for this dish and for this recipe, I used ¼ cups each of the three sauce ingredients.

TYPICAL CUTS OF CHICKEN FOR TAIWANESE 3 CUP CHICKEN:

In Taiwan, San Bei Gi would normally be made with chicken that's been chopped into bite-sized, bone-in pieces, typically a chicken drumstick. For this, you either need a cooperative butcher or some crazy cleaver skills.

Sadly, I have neither, so I used skinless boneless chicken thighs.

HOW MUCH GARLIC??

I know. It seems crazy. But #trusturvashi You will want all of this. It tastes FANTASTIC.

Cooking the garlic in oil helps flavor the oil while also cooking down some of the pungency in the garlic.

PRESSURE COOKER SAUCE AMOUNT:

Sanbeiji is traditionally served with no sauce. You cook the dish until the sauce rather all evaporates, or is absorbed by the chicken.

I’m still experimenting on this a little because I will tell you, this dish produces more sauce when cooked in a pressure cooker than when you cook it on the stove.

So, it’s not a totally dry casserole like you’d get if you cooked it stovetop.

Your choices are to:

• Embrace lots of lovely sauce and enjoy it with bok choy, spinach, or rice
• Sauté after cooking to reduce the liquid, but be aware it might overcook your chicken a little
• Try sautéing some of the cooking liquid before you cook (I didn’t try this so I can’t report on how this works)

Me, I love the sauce so I’m going with option 1.

MAKING THIS VEGAN:

Daniel Bush from my facebook group make this with tofu and tempeh instead of the chicken and said it was fantastic, with no other changes.

If you try that, be sure to thank him for experimenting for you!

EQUIPMENT YOU MAY NEED TO MAKE THIS INSTANT POT PRESSURE COOKER TAIWANESE 3 CUP CHICKEN SAN BEI JI:

• Instant Pot Mini Duo, or Instant pot 6 quarts, or Instant Pot 8 Quarts
• Measuring Cups
• My favorite Cutting Board
• Good set of Kitchen Knives

Looking for more great Thai dishes? Check out my Thai Yellow Curry Baked Chicken Thighs!

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Instant Pot Taiwanese Three Cup Chicken (San Bei Ji) Recipe

Instant Pot Taiwanese 3 cup chicken is a fragrant, satisfying dish bursting with flavor. Garlic, ginger and basil fragrance and combine with sesame oil, Shaoxing wine, and soy sauce for an easy, traditional authentic dish that will have you begging for more.

Print Recipe Rate Recipe

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 10 minutes

Course: Main Courses

Cuisine: Chinese, Taiwanese

Keyword: San Bei Ji, Taiwanese Three Cup Chicken, Three Cup Chicken

Servings: 6

Calories: 307kcal

Author: Urvashi Pitre

Click on highlighted ingredients or Equipment to see exactly what I use to make this recipe

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup (54.5 g) Sesame Oil
• 6 (6 ) Dried Red Chilis
• 1/4 cup (34 g) Minced Garlic, peel cloves, smack with the side of a knife
• 2 Tablespoons (2 Tablespoons) julienned ginger
• 2 pounds (907.18 g) Bone-in Skin-on Chicken Thighs
• 1/4 cup (58 g) Soy Sauce
• 1/4 cup (60 g) rice wine , or pale dry sherry
• Kosher Salt

For Finishing

• 1/4 cup (6 g) Thai basil, chopped, or regular basil
• 1/2 teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) Xanthan Gum, or if NOT low carb, 1 tablespoon cornstarch mixed with water for a slurry

Instructions

• Turn your Instant Pot to Sauté and when it is hot, add the oil. Once the oil is ot, add the chilies, ginger, and garlic and let them fry for 2 mins until the ginger and garlic are just starting to crisp.
• Dump in everything except the basil.
• Cook for 7 mins 10 mins NPR.
• Open the lid and turn the pot on Sauté.
• Add chopped basil leaves and stir.
• When the liquid boils, sprinkle the xanthum gum and let it thicken, or add cornstarch slurry to let it thicken
• EAT!

For a vegetarian version, substitute tofu and/or tempeh instead of the chicken and follow all other directions as listed.

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Nutrition

Calories: 307kcal | Carbohydrates: 7g | Protein: 31g | Fat: 15g | Sugar: 2g

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Don't forget to check out my Instant Pot Fast & Easy Cookbook! 

This book is full of all kinds of boldly flavored and internationally-themed recipes—Mexican, Thai, Moroccan, and more—with Instant Pot Fast & Easy, fully authorized by Instant Pot. Just like you have come to expect, my recipes will work perfectly every time, and of course taste great too. And because these are Instant Pot recipes, dishes like Japanese Chicken Curry, Chinese Steamed Ribs, and Mexican Pulled Pork are ready in a fraction of the time they would take using traditional cooking methods. As with all of my recipes, the focus is on whole foods instead of artificial convenience ingredients, so the recipes are delicious, easy, and healthful too.